Replies

1. 
   notDusty | Jul 23, 2005 09:04pm | #1

                 Mark ,

                             IMO . I think when the front is just slightly wider than the back it gives the chair a less clunky and more balanced look .

                         dusty

1. 
   jazzdogg | Jul 26, 2005 05:27am | #2

   "...when the front is just slightly wider than the back it gives the chair a less clunky and more balanced look ."

   Dusty,

   For what it's worth, I agree with you: When the rear is slightly narrower than the front, the chair looks a little more elegant, weighs a little less, and is a little more comfortable.

    -Jazzdogg-

   "Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Gil Bailie

1. 
   notDusty | Jul 26, 2005 07:32am | #3

                jazzdogg ,

                                Thanks for conferring , the very first old chair I ever bought was a Mission chair that would have been common say , in the court house or the likes . I looked at it and what I noticed was the seat frame was wider in the front than the back , but the leg and apron or frame work was close to square . The seat actually overhung the legs more in the front  than the back .The Mission style was for the most part heavy and square with little detail , some of the old sofas and square chairs were clunky looking , but who are we to question the works of the Masters ?

                          regards                          dusty

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

                              

1. 
   jazzdogg | Jul 26, 2005 08:42pm | #4

   "...who are we to question the works of the Masters?"

   Dusty,

   If I don't see pants, I'm not hesitant to say the emperor has no clothes. I guess the question boils down to who proclaimed certain craftsmen "masters," whether the title was deserved in the first place, and if the title remains valid today.

   I see all kinds of clunky old furniture, inelegantly scaled and crafted, often with split panels because seasonal movement wasn't given due consideration in the design and contruction process; the fact that this furniture was made a long time ago doesn't automatically confer master's status on the makers - there was a lot of expediently produced junk produced a long time ago, just as there is today.

   Tha fact that a piece was executed in a certain style is realtively meaningless with respect to quality of craftsmanship, whether the piece emulates Mission, Shaker,  Maloof, or Krenov - all can fail miserably.

   I'm unlikely to make or buy an awkward, heavy, uncomfortable, chair just because it is in a style that was popular several years ago, irrespective of how much praise its maker has garnered over the years. But then, I guess that says more about my contrarian nature than it does about the furniture under scrutiny,

   Good post,-Jazzdogg-

   "Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Gil Bailie

1. 
   WillGeorge | Jul 26, 2005 10:02pm | #5

   Jazz..that says more about my contrarian nature ..Dang guy.. Do not hold it back.. We love ys' anyway!

2. 
   notDusty | Jul 27, 2005 06:59am | #6

                     jazzdogg ,

                                        I would certainly agree with most of what you said , just because the piece was made a long time ago , does not mean that it was made by a Master . However in all fairness , it may have been . IMO   much of the Mission pieces that are still here largely were made in factories . The guy that made the proto type may have been a Masters level type . I think of the Stickley Bros and Greene and Greene and a handful of others as true craftsmen and Masters of their craft . The poorly crafted pieces won't last as long typically , don't you think ?                             As far as some clunky old chairs , reminds me of a quick story I want to share with you . About 20 years ago a couple we know who live in Eastern Canada asked me to find them an arm chair as they just were blessed with a new born , he said Mom needed the chair with arms . Well I found an oak chair with arms ,for $ 35.00 . About a year or so later on the next trip to the West they stopped by and visited and picked up the chair . As I turned the chair up side down to load it into their vehicle is when I got a shock , when the makers name was Stickley . It was kind of like sitting on the toilet when the seat is up , a real surprise if you know what I mean .                 regards                                dusty